Parachute

The parachute will be housed, for the entire flight, under the upper hemisphere of the FFU.

Calculations of the terminal velocity has been made and the Top Flight ThinMill 30″ X-shape has preliminary been chosen. This parachute will be sufficient to achieve a landing speed of around 10 m/s for the preliminary mass estimate of the FFUs. Drop and deployment tests will be made, similar to previous KTH REXUS teams, which will determine the final parachute size.

An extra precaution has been made regarding the packed volume of the parachute. Volume estimates of a few parachutes has been made (including cords) and the ThinMill 30″ packs well inside the upper hemisphere and weighs only 28g/m2 (!). Folding tests were made with fabric of the same density and size as the ThinMill 30″ and the results were implemented the volume estimates. More folding experiments will be performed with the parachute and the ropes to find the most efficient and reliable packing method.

The connection between the parachute and the FFU will be through a long rope to ensure that the parachute ropes do not entangle during the descent. Tests will be done to determine that the parachute can withstand the shock force when deployed.